|
 Lam said stringent coronavirus rules would be in place until
mid-April with schools shut until August, as authorities battle to
control an "exponential" rise of infections which have overwhelmed
healthcare facilities and resources.
Hong Kong is home to some of the most densely populated districts on
Earth, with the majority of people living in high-rises cheek by
jowl with family members and sharing sometimes tiny lifts.
"The coming one to three months are crucial in fighting the
pandemic," Lam told a press briefing.
Residents would need to test three times under the compulsory
testing scheme with daily testing capacity reaching one million.
Venues including school campuses could be used for testing and
isolation, she said.
Lam reiterated the city's "dynamic zero COVID" strategy similar to
mainland China, aiming to eradicate any outbreaks at all costs. She
repeatedly thanked mainland authorities for their "staunch support".
Health authorities in the former British colony reported 6,211 new
cases, 32 deaths and a further 9,369 cases that came up positive in
preliminary tests. They said a backlog in testing meant they were
unable to get a full picture.
In a paper titled "Modelling the fifth wave of COVID-19 in Hong
Kong", researchers at the University of Hong Kong said they updated
their Feb. 10 study to show the number of daily deaths potentially
peaking at near 100 by late March, and cumulative deaths potentially
rising to around 3,206 by mid-May.
Infections could peak at 180,000 a day.
Less than two weeks ago, the same researchers had predicted daily
infections potentially peaking at around 28,000 by mid-March with a
total of 954 deaths by the end of June.
In the absence of much more intensive social distancing measures,
like a city-wide lockdown, "the trajectory of the fifth wave is
unlikely to change substantially from its current course", the study
said.
[to top of second column] |
 Hong Kong has reported that since the start of
February daily infections have surged by around
70 times, overwhelming the government's testing,
hospital and quarantine capacities, as it
attempts to stifle the virus.
SOCIAL DISTANCING
Hong Kong already has some of the world's toughest rules to curb
COVID-19. Stringent restrictions mean that very few flights are able
to land while most transit passengers are banned.
Lam said a flight ban from nine countries including the United
States and Britain would remain in place until April 20 with other
countries potentially being added to the list.
Gatherings of more than two people are banned and most venues,
including schools, gyms and beauty salons, are closed.
The restrictions, which were first imposed in 2020 are testing the
patience of residents, as fatigue and anxiety sets in with
businesses across the city reeling from the closures.
In total the city has reported over 60,000 infections, far less than
other similar major cities.
The study anticipated that the number of infected people in 7-day
isolation could potentially reach over 600,000, while the number of
close contacts in seven-day quarantine could reach 1.8 million,
leading to a substantial disruption in society.
(Reporting by Anne Marie Roantree, Twinnie Siu, Marius Zaharia and
Farah Master; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell, Simon Cameron-Moore and
Nick Macfie)
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